Fearing Big Gray

Wednesday

Nov 21, 2012 at 12:01 AMNov 27, 2012 at 8:24 AM

During the campaign, Rick liked to invoke images of Mitt Romney sitting in his palace, midas like, sifting his fingers through piles of gold coins. Turns out that the real actors in this scenario are not the Republican plutocrats, but rather the graying baby boomers. A few months ago, I heard a term that I had never heard before–Big Gray–referring to the fact the me generation of selfish baby boomers have now transformed their selfish agenda of the 1960s into a selfish agenda of the 2010s-2020s. Hands off my social security. Live for today. Who cares about the children or grandchildren who will pay for it. While Rick and some pundits like to say that this election was about youth and Latinos and empowered african americans, a close study indicates that this election was probably awarded by selfish baby boomers voting for the candidate who was least likely to push for cuts in entitlements. It is entirely plausible to read the election results as having nothing to do with immigration, or the popularity of Obama or any of his beliefs, values, mores or shoe size. Instead, we may have just seen the first election of the Baby Boomer Cycle in which the selfishness of the me generation turned the corner into chief grunters from the public feeding trough, and woe to anyone who doesn’t want to pay for it. It will take awhile for the numbers to be crunched, but it is clear that there is an age divide in key categories. Older Jews voted Democrat. Younger Jews voted Republican. etc. Anyone can spin the numbers, but it is undeniable, even on this blog, that Democrats who voted for Obama expect every bit as much to have their financial security enhanced as Republicans who voted for Romney. OK, greed may be a two way street, but at least Republicans are honest about it.

During the campaign, Rick liked to invoke images of Mitt Romney sitting in his palace, midas like, sifting his fingers through piles of gold coins. Turns out that the real actors in this scenario are not the Republican plutocrats, but rather the graying baby boomers. A few months ago, I heard a term that I had never heard before–Big Gray–referring to the fact the me generation of selfish baby boomers have now transformed their selfish agenda of the 1960s into a selfish agenda of the 2010s-2020s. Hands off my social security. Live for today. Who cares about the children or grandchildren who will pay for it. While Rick and some pundits like to say that this election was about youth and Latinos and empowered african americans, a close study indicates that this election was probably awarded by selfish baby boomers voting for the candidate who was least likely to push for cuts in entitlements. It is entirely plausible to read the election results as having nothing to do with immigration, or the popularity of Obama or any of his beliefs, values, mores or shoe size. Instead, we may have just seen the first election of the Baby Boomer Cycle in which the selfishness of the me generation turned the corner into chief grunters from the public feeding trough, and woe to anyone who doesn’t want to pay for it. It will take awhile for the numbers to be crunched, but it is clear that there is an age divide in key categories. Older Jews voted Democrat. Younger Jews voted Republican. etc. Anyone can spin the numbers, but it is undeniable, even on this blog, that Democrats who voted for Obama expect every bit as much to have their financial security enhanced as Republicans who voted for Romney. OK, greed may be a two way street, but at least Republicans are honest about it.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Sister Publication

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
Boonville Daily News - Boonville, MO ~ 412 High St. Boonville, MO 65233 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service